Montréal, April 5, 2005 — Héma-Québec is joining forces with Diving Plongeon Canada, world champion Émilie Heymans and Canadian Blood Services to promote blood donation. Today, the three are launching a campaign that will be held across the country from now until April 30, 2005.

During an international competition last October, Tori Kennedy—a young athlete, member of the national junior diving team and an Olympic hopeful—learned that she suffers from aplastic anemia. Since then, she has been fighting this disease thanks to the blood transfusions she has received. This situation has raised the diving community’s awareness of the population’s requirements for blood and blood components.

Héma-Québec would, therefore, like to invite everyone, especially the diving and amateur sport communities as well as their families and friends, to give blood at one of the GLOBULE blood donor centres or at one of the blood drives that will be held during the month of April. Héma-Québec would ask that donors who are rooting for Tori identify themselves to the registration staff so that their donations can be properly recorded with the participation statistics for this pan-Canadian operation. Donor wishes for a speedy recovery will be sent to Tori and her family at the end of the month-long campaign.

“We appreciate the efforts of the sport community who are lending their support to Héma-Québec as it pursues its mandate to ensure the blood supply. We are happy to be associated with their generous campaign,” emphasized Dr. Francine Décary, President and Chief Executive Officer of Héma-Québec. Call 1-800-847-2525 or visit the Web site of Héma-Québec for blood drive time and location.

Created in September 1998, Héma-Québec's mission is to efficiently provide adequate quantities of safe, optimal blood components, substitutes and human tissues to meet the needs of all Quebeckers; provide and develop expertise and services, along with specialized and innovative products in the fields of transfusion medicine and human tissue transplantation.